Led by Al Thayer, OSWA's 2nd Vice president and Governmental Affairs committee chair, a number of OSWA members took advantage of our Inaugural OSWA Grassroots Day at the Capitol Thursday, May 17.

Sanford and Susan Hillman, Bill Arsenault of Douglas Chapter, Jean McCloskey, John Poppino, Doug Shannon of Clackamas Chapter, Frank Pender, Dennis Werth, Don Duhrkopf of Marion and Polk Chapter, Greg Latta of Linn Chapter, Dave Schmidt, Nancy Hathaway and Gary Springer of Benton Chapter all took time to travel to Salem, joining Al and OSWA State Affairs Coordinator, Kristina McNitt, to experience a day at the Capitol.

OSWA's booth in the Capitol Galleria was themed "Howdy Neighbor" to highlight the outsized influence of Family Forests on Oregon's economic, ecological and social environment due to their location typically situated along the lower reaches of Oregon's streams, near cities, suburbs, and the more densely populated rural areas. These lands provide significant values by contributing to the sustainablility of forest and fish habitat, and through the contribution of wildlife habitat corridors among properties under non-resource use.

Booth handouts and a continuously running video on forest management showcased Oregon's Forest Practices Act. Our message was to educate the public and inform policy makers about the prioritized need to fully fund the 13 proposed restorations of Stewardship Foresters in the Oregon Department Forestry budget. A second message of the day was the importance of revising Oregon's inheritance tax laws and how the tax interferes with multi-generational land management.

Sanford and Susan Hillman commented, "We came really not knowing what to expect but looking forward to tagging along with the experts. To visit with our Representative was great. The way the day was planned was beyond our expectations. We recommend doing it again. We'll be visiting all our legislators in their local office; we no longer feel intimidated and thank you OSWA."

Bill Arsenault, Douglas County member and past OSWA Vice President of OSWA said "I was looking forward to the day and certainly had a new experience. Talking in depth with Reps. Burley, Krieger and Senator Beyer; meeting with Reps Hanna in his office face to face about our issue was great. Learning from Fred Van Natta and Kristina about how to lobby and building effective relations with your legislator really added to the day. I'd encourage other members to take advantage of this opportunity in 2009"

David Schmidt of Benton County wants all members to know that they should "Come and met with their legislators in 2009, they want to hear from us."